December 2016

RIYADH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense, said Saturday that during the rule of King Salman, Saudi Arabia has been transformed into an international forum, a global center and an interface for world leaders and presidents.The objective of this, he said, has been to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s relations with other states and continue cooperation and coordination with them on local, regional and world issues.The deputy crown prince was speaking on the occasion of the second anniversary of the reign of King Salman.Under the reign of King Salman, the Kingdom made great achievements globally and emphasized its political weight, reflected in the extraordinary visits of the king to brotherly and friendly countries.He said that in light of the challenges the region is facing, the Kingdom’s leadership has taken the initiative to guarantee the security and stability of the Arab world and put the Kingdom on a higher pedestal. As a result, the initiative and the declaration of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 will target the transformation of Saudi Arabia onto wider economic horizons that have the ability to interact with the difficult international economic situations. The deputy crown prince said the king’s wise leadership is also seen in his steadfastness to fight and dry up the sources of terrorism proactively.Another praiseworthy move of King Salman was to create the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center to provide aid and assistance to friendly Arab and Islamic countries, and participate in alleviating the plight of people facing disasters.

• Jan. 20: King Salman receives Chinese President Xi Jinping and confers on him King Abdulaziz Medal in Riyadh. During the Chinese president’s visit, the two countries sign 14 energy and industrial pacts.

• Feb. 14: King Salman is presented with International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) Sustainable Development Award by ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao.

• March 9: King Salman arrives in Hafr Al-Batin to attend the final maneuvers of the “Operation North Thunder” aimed at ensuring combat-readiness of the Kingdom and its allies. The drill involves 2,500 warplanes, 20,000 tanks and 350,000 troops.

• March 10: King Salman meets leaders of the countries joining the Islamic alliance.

• March 28: King Salman and South African President Jacob Zuma stress the importance of continued cooperation on international and regional issues, notably the UN reforms and the fight against terrorism and extremism.

• April 3: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds talks with King Salman; the Kingdom and India signs five agreements in Riyadh.

• April 7: King Salman arrives in Egypt during which the two countries sign an investment fund pact and announce a $3 billion causeway project.

• April 20: King Salman holds talks with US President Barack Obama in Riyadh. The two leaders discuss key bilateral and regional issues including terrorism, Iran, Yemen and Syria.

• April 25: Saudi Cabinet chaired by King Salman approves the Saudi Vision 2030, which aims to reduce dependence on oil and ensure sustainable development.

• April 28: King Salman receives Jordanian King Abdallah and the two countries sign an agreement to establish a Saudi-Jordanian Coordination Council.

• May 2: The Saudi government announces plans under which 75 percent of Saudi citizens will own houses within five years.

• Aug. 15: King Salman announces a one-month salary bonus for all Saudi soldiers fighting in the Operation Decisive Storm and Operation Restoring Hope in Yemen.

• Oct. 26: King Salman and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev hold talks and witness the signing of 16 mutual agreements in different areas.

• Jan. 20: King Salman receives Chinese President Xi Jinping and confers on him King Abdulaziz Medal in Riyadh. During the Chinese president’s visit, the two countries sign 14 energy and industrial pacts.

• Feb. 14: King Salman is presented with International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) Sustainable Development Award by ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao.

• March 9: King Salman arrives in Hafr Al-Batin to attend the final maneuvers of the “Operation North Thunder” aimed at ensuring combat-readiness of the Kingdom and its allies. The drill involves 2,500 warplanes, 20,000 tanks and 350,000 troops.

• March 10: King Salman meets leaders of the countries joining the Islamic alliance.

• March 28: King Salman and South African President Jacob Zuma stress the importance of continued cooperation on international and regional issues, notably the UN reforms and the fight against terrorism and extremism.

• April 3: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds talks with King Salman; the Kingdom and India signs five agreements in Riyadh.

• April 7: King Salman arrives in Egypt during which the two countries sign an investment fund pact and announce a $3 billion causeway project.

• April 20: King Salman holds talks with US President Barack Obama in Riyadh. The two leaders discuss key bilateral and regional issues including terrorism, Iran, Yemen and Syria.

• April 25: Saudi Cabinet chaired by King Salman approves the Saudi Vision 2030, which aims to reduce dependence on oil and ensure sustainable development.

• April 28: King Salman receives Jordanian King Abdallah and the two countries sign an agreement to establish a Saudi-Jordanian Coordination Council.

• May 2: The Saudi government announces plans under which 75 percent of Saudi citizens will own houses within five years.

• Aug. 15: King Salman announces a one-month salary bonus for all Saudi soldiers fighting in the Operation Decisive Storm and Operation Restoring Hope in Yemen.

• Oct. 26: King Salman and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev hold talks and witness the signing of 16 mutual agreements in different areas.

Happy New Year! As we wrap up another successful year of the statistics blog (now with >50k followers), we would be remiss not to recognize some nice friends who are still feeling disappointed over the outcome of the recent U.S. election. It is worth exploring a little more about the election results, based on the most updated voting records. Particularly as the Democrats have pivoted the tête-à-tête from recount and FBI director Comey, to popular vote and Russian president Putin.

It turns out that this sort of conclusion is false, and instead it leads to one party presuming to hold a mighty moral high-ground from their ¼ voting share?

From a peak in 2008, now through 2016, those not caring to vote (in white below) continuously rose to 45% (from 43%). This is a higher voter apathy than in virtually all other advanced countries. And frankly, it is the largest American segment of 114m (up from 99m). Last-minute undecideds (including me) rose.

Additionally, the voting share for the popular vote “winner” (in blue below) fell to 48% (from 53%), or as a portion of the entire eligible population (as opposed to as a portion of voters) it fell to 26% (from 30%). So on net, even as the population grew, a small fraction voted (and within that an even smaller fraction voted for the popular vote “winner”). This results in Hillary Clinton not epitomizing the views of “most Americans” even if she “won the popular vote”, but rather supported by only 66 million Americans (down from 70 million who voted for Barack Obama in 2008).

I’m with her? Observe their share of the pie, below! Democrats have simply seen a continuously dwindling moral-standing to speak for all Americans, even as the population has grown in the past 8 years.

So now back to my friends who are still feeling sour over the Presidential election and looking for relief. I feel a particular sense of responsibility since my polling probability research was read by millions and continuously solicited/shared by one party, and always properly showed Donald Trump had much stronger odds (~3x) versus what MSM polls or Nate Silver were “scientifically” suggesting. It is worth noting something here at year-end: it’s an acutely individual loss, to not see that there are so many tremendous and long-term opportunities we get to enjoy, just living in a great nation such as the United States. We get most things right, most of the time. We get to argue about politics and not worry about a knock on our door in the middle of the night.

The rest of the world has already moved on, as they should. They really never cared as much about you, or your candidate (just as ½ of our own country doesn’t, per above). That was mainstream media noise that fooled you. And having worked for many years, in and out of Washington, we can assure you that well over 90% of people have issues so much larger than who was or will be in the White House. Yet it’s captivating, nonetheless, the amount of attention spent in social circles defying this actuality, and presuming moral high-ground by falsely twisting statistics to suit private needs. By setting some simple statistics straight, we honestly hope 2017 ushers in a new era of knowledge, contentment and worldly views, as we leave the disparaging partisan choke-hold of the 2016 elections behind.

JEDDAH: Islam Saqr Ramadan, father of Egyptian conjoined twins Mina and Mai, said the decision by King Salman to treat his children at the Kingdom’s expense has returned happiness to his family.King Salman ordered that the twins be transferred to Riyadh-based King Abdulaziz Medical City for treatment.An Egyptian website quoted Ramadan as saying that he received a phone call from the Saudi ambassador in Cairo, Ahmed Qattan, inviting him to come and finalize his papers to travel to Riyadh.The father added that he received a call from Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, the head of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, which specializes in such cases, who stated the center’s readiness to deal with the expenses and the parents’ accommodation costs.The Saudi Press Agency said King Salman ordered that the Egyptian conjoined twins undergo necessary medical tests to assess the possibility of a separation.“This is a kind and noble gesture of the king toward needy people in the Kingdom, Arab, Islamic and friendly countries,” Al-Rabeeah told the agency.The Egyptian media have highlighted the issue of the twins, who are joined in the head and share some membranes around the brain and veins.The family faced a difficult time in Egypt, partly due to the high medical expenses incurred.

JEDDAH: Islam Saqr Ramadan, father of Egyptian conjoined twins Mina and Mai, said the decision by King Salman to treat his children at the Kingdom’s expense has returned happiness to his family.King Salman ordered that the twins be transferred to Riyadh-based King Abdulaziz Medical City for treatment.An Egyptian website quoted Ramadan as saying that he received a phone call from the Saudi ambassador in Cairo, Ahmed Qattan, inviting him to come and finalize his papers to travel to Riyadh.The father added that he received a call from Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, the head of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, which specializes in such cases, who stated the center’s readiness to deal with the expenses and the parents’ accommodation costs.The Saudi Press Agency said King Salman ordered that the Egyptian conjoined twins undergo necessary medical tests to assess the possibility of a separation.“This is a kind and noble gesture of the king toward needy people in the Kingdom, Arab, Islamic and friendly countries,” Al-Rabeeah told the agency.The Egyptian media have highlighted the issue of the twins, who are joined in the head and share some membranes around the brain and veins.The family faced a difficult time in Egypt, partly due to the high medical expenses incurred.

RIYADH: The wives of several ambassadors to the Kingdom have hailed the “Producers-4” exhibition as a genuine annual opportunity for Saudi families to market their products. The diplomats’ wives said that the exhibition, organized by the Riyadh Center for Development of Small- and Medium-size Enterprises at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center, showcases handmade works executed in a modern, creative fashion and encourages small enterprises. Omayma Al-Busaidi, wife of the Omani ambassador, commended the efforts of the organizers of “Producers-4,” saying that she eagerly awaits the exhibition every year.This is her third annual visit to the exhibition, Al-Busaidi said, adding that every year she sees new ideas, products and marketing methods. “Producers-4 helps encourage talented and creative Saudi women and gives them the opportunity to showcase and market their products in one organized place, making it easier for buyers to purchase all what they need,” she added. Nafisah Ahmed, president of the Arab group of wives of representatives of diplomatic missions in Riyadh, expressed admiration for the exhibition, stressing that Saudi women display distinguished works and products of perfect quality, and use original marketing methods.“The exhibition supports Saudi families, provides them with a guaranteed source of income, contributes to boosting the country’s economy and introduces the participants to senior investors, opening future prospects for them in the labor market,” she said. The wife of the Palestinian ambassador, Nagwa Al-Agha, said she liked most the various handicrafts representing different regions of the Kingdom, and stressed that marketing is one of the goals productive families often seek. She added that the ultimate benefit of the exhibition is that it generates income for these families, and that modern means of social communication help in marketing the products. The wife of the Tunisian ambassador, Sumaiya Baatour, praised the skill of Saudi women involved in the maintenance of mobile phones and smart devices, and pointed out that paying attention to productive families’ projects contributes to the development of their capabilities, and provides them with income through personal training that hones their skills.

RIYADH: The wives of several ambassadors to the Kingdom have hailed the “Producers-4” exhibition as a genuine annual opportunity for Saudi families to market their products. The diplomats’ wives said that the exhibition, organized by the Riyadh Center for Development of Small- and Medium-size Enterprises at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center, showcases handmade works executed in a modern, creative fashion and encourages small enterprises. Omayma Al-Busaidi, wife of the Omani ambassador, commended the efforts of the organizers of “Producers-4,” saying that she eagerly awaits the exhibition every year.This is her third annual visit to the exhibition, Al-Busaidi said, adding that every year she sees new ideas, products and marketing methods. “Producers-4 helps encourage talented and creative Saudi women and gives them the opportunity to showcase and market their products in one organized place, making it easier for buyers to purchase all what they need,” she added. Nafisah Ahmed, president of the Arab group of wives of representatives of diplomatic missions in Riyadh, expressed admiration for the exhibition, stressing that Saudi women display distinguished works and products of perfect quality, and use original marketing methods.“The exhibition supports Saudi families, provides them with a guaranteed source of income, contributes to boosting the country’s economy and introduces the participants to senior investors, opening future prospects for them in the labor market,” she said. The wife of the Palestinian ambassador, Nagwa Al-Agha, said she liked most the various handicrafts representing different regions of the Kingdom, and stressed that marketing is one of the goals productive families often seek. She added that the ultimate benefit of the exhibition is that it generates income for these families, and that modern means of social communication help in marketing the products. The wife of the Tunisian ambassador, Sumaiya Baatour, praised the skill of Saudi women involved in the maintenance of mobile phones and smart devices, and pointed out that paying attention to productive families’ projects contributes to the development of their capabilities, and provides them with income through personal training that hones their skills.

Author: FOUZIA KHANSun, 2017-01-01ID: 1483223339133022200JEDDAH: The executive committee of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent will hold an emergency meeting in Tunisia on Sunday to discuss the deteriorating conditions of Syrian ref…

be very risky.

be very risky.
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